The Charlotte Hornets and Boston Celtics exchange two starter caliber centers.
In another straight-up trade that deals expiring contracts, the Charlotte Hornets land the Celtics’ Daniel Theis by sending Cody Zeller to Boston.
Because Theis is on a $5 million contract and Zeller holds a $15.4 million salary cap figure this season, in order for this trade, not a require additional players to make the salaries work, the Celtics could use one or a combination of their trade exceptions to make the deal.
The Celtics have trade exceptions from the departures of Gordon Hayward ($28.5 million), Enes Kanter ($4.7 million), and Vincent Poirier ($2.5 million). The Celtics would need to attach $10.4 million of their trade exception capital to make this particular deal happen.
This trade would reunite Zeller and Kemba Walker in Boston and could add another layer of offensive to the Celtic attack with the utilization of Walker and Zeller’s exceptional pick-and-roll game.
For the Hornets, this presents another avenue for the team to acquire Theis without giving up future draft capitals or a young player on the roster.